The present invention relates generally to a lid for use in combination with a drinking cup and more particularly to a lid enabling drinking from the cup without removal of the lid.
It is well known to apply disposable lids to disposable drinking cups for carry-out sale of beverages such as coffee. Many of the lids commonly in use for this purpose must be removed prior to drinking of the beverage to provide access to the beverage. Removal of the lid may be inconvenient, particularly if the user is attempting to hold the cup and remove the lid with one hand. Also, if the user desires to drink the beverage while walking or traveling in a vehicle, removal of the lid may enable the beverage to splash out of the cup should the cup be jarred, or pour out of the cup should the cup be tilted.
Some lids have had score lines or the like formed in them to define a removable portion which may be punched out or folded to provide access to the beverage. One disadvantage of this type of lid is that it may be inconvenient for the user to perform the requisite penetration or folding of the lid, particularly if the user is walking or riding in a vehicle, or has only one hand free.
Some lids have included preformed openings for drinking. However, in some such lids which have been proposed in the past, the position of the opening has been such that drinking through the opening is difficult or uncomfortable due to the way in which the user's mouth engages the lid.